Mark Mothersbaugh
| birth_place = Akron, Ohio, U.S. | residence = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | occupation = | spouse = | children = 2 | parents = | relatives = *Jim Mothersbaugh *Amy Mothersbaugh *Susan Mothersbaugh *Silas Hite }} | module = |synth-pop |electronic rockSteinberg and Michael Kehler (2010), p.355|film score}} | instrument = | years_active = 1972–present | label = | associated_acts = | website = | notable_instruments = }} | signature = | signature_alt = Mark Mothersbaugh's signature | signature_size = }}Mark Allen Mothersbaugh ( ; born May 18, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, author and visual artist. Mothersbaugh came to prominence in the late 1970s as co-founder, lead singer, keyboardist of the new wave band Devo, whose "Whip It" was a Top 20 single in the US in 1980 and which has since maintained a cult following. Mothersbaugh is one of the main composers of Devo's music. In addition to his work with Devo, Mothersbaugh has made music for television series, films and video games via his production company, Mutato Muzika. Most notably, he composed the music for the 13-year-run of the animated series Rugrats and its three related theatrical films. As a solo musician, he has released four studio albums: Muzik for Insomniaks, Muzik for the Gallery, Joyeux Mutato and The Most Powerful Healing Muzik in the Entire World. In 2004, he received the Richard Kirk award at the BMI Film and TV Awards for his contributions to film and television music. In 2008, Mothersbaugh received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Kent State University, his alma mater. His lifelong interest in creating multimedia art pieces has resulted in gallery exhibitions of items such as his "Beautiful Mutants" photograph series, postcard diaries, art rugs, sculptures and musical instruments created from salvaged organ pipes and bird vocalizations. He has married twice and is the father of two adopted children. Early years Mark Allen Mothersbaugh was born on May 18, 1950, in Akron, Ohio. He is the son of Mary Margaret ("Mig") and Robert Mothersbaugh, Sr. He grew up with two younger brothers, Bob and Jim, who are both musicians, and two sisters, Amy and Susan. His father appeared in early Devo films and fan events as the character General Boy and his brothers participated in the band, although Jim's tenure was brief, appearing only on several early demos. Career Devo , 2007]] Mothersbaugh attended Kent State University as an art student, where he met Devo co-founders Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis. In early 1970, Lewis and Casale formed the idea of the "devolution" of the human race after Casale's friend Jeffrey Miller was killed by Ohio National Guardsmen on university grounds during what came to be known as the Kent State shootings. Intrigued by the concept, Mothersbaugh joined them, building upon it with elements of early post-structuralist ideas and oddball arcana, most notably unearthing the infamous Jocko-Homo Heavenbound pamphlet (the basis for the song "Jocko Homo"). This association culminated in 1973, when the trio started to play music as Devo. , in Melbourne, Australia, 2008: Gerald Casale and Mothersbaugh]]Following the commercial failure of their sixth studio album Shout, Warner Bros. dropped Devo. Shortly after, claiming to feel creatively unfulfilled, drummer Alan Myers left the band, causing the remaining band members to abandon the plans for a Shout video LP, as well as a tour. In 1987, Devo reformed with new drummer David Kendrick, formerly of Sparks to replace Myers. Their first project was a soundtrack for the flop horror film Slaughterhouse Rock, starring Toni Basil and they released the albums Total Devo (1988) and Smooth Noodle Maps (1990), on Enigma. Devo had a falling-out and played two shows in 1991 before breaking up. Around this time, members of Devo appeared in the film The Spirit of '76, except for Bob Mothersbaugh. In 1989, Mark Mothersbaugh established Mutato Muzika, a commercial music production studio, hiring Ryan Moore and Bob Casale; Bob Mothersbaugh was also involved. In 2006, Devo worked with Disney on the Devo 2.0 project: a band of child performers was assembled to re-record Devo songs. The Akron Beacon Journal wrote, "Devo recently finished a new project in cahoots with Disney called Devo 2.0, which features the band playing old songs and two new ones with vocals provided by children. Their debut album, a two disc CD/DVD combo entitled DEV2.0, was released on March 14, 2006. The lyrics of some of the songs were changed for family-friendly airplay, which has been claimed by the band to be a play on irony of the messages of their classic hits. Mothersbaugh doesn't rule out the idea of the band gathering in the studio, eventually, to record a new Devo album." The album, Something for Everybody was eventually released in June 2010, preceded by a 12" single of "Fresh"/"What We Do". Devo was awarded the first Moog Innovator Award on October 29, 2010, during Moogfest 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina. The award aims to celebrate "pioneering artists whose genre-defying work exemplifies the bold, innovative spirit of Bob Moog". Devo was scheduled to perform at Moogfest, but canceled three days beforehand after Mothersbaugh injured his hand. He and Gerald Casale collaborated with Austin, Texas, band The Octopus Project to perform "Girl U Want" and "Beautiful World" at the event instead. Other work In 1989, Mothersbaugh and other members of Devo were involved in the project Visiting Kids, releasing a self-titled EP on the New Rose label in 1990. The group featured his then-wife Nancye Ferguson, as well as David Kendrick, Bob Mothersbaugh, and Bob's daughter Alex Mothersbaugh. Mothersbaugh co-wrote some of the songs, and produced the album with Bob Casale. A promotional video was filmed for the song "Trilobites". Visiting Kids appeared on the soundtrack to the film Rockula, as well as on the Late Show with David Letterman. Since Devo, Mothersbaugh has developed a successful career writing musical scores for film and television. In film, he has worked frequently with filmmaker Wes Anderson, scoring half of his feature films (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou ). He also composed for ''The Lego Movie. His music has been a staple of the children's television shows Rugrats, Beakman's World, Santo Bugito and Clifford the Big Red Dog. He also wrote the new theme song for the original Felix the Cat show when it was sold to Broadway Video, some music for Pee-wee's Playhouse in 1990 and the theme song for the Super Mario World TV series for DIC Entertainment in 1991. The character design for Chuckie Finster on Rugrats was based on him. Mothersbaugh also produces music for in video games, including Sony's Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter series (both music scores were created by Josh Mancell), and creating music for EA Games' The Sims 2. This work is often performed with Mutato Muzika, the music production company he formed with several other former members of Devo including his brother, Bob Mothersbaugh. Mothersbaugh composed: * "Having Trouble Sneezing", the distinctive music in the award-winning "Get a Mac" commercials for Apple Inc. * The score for the first season of the television series Big Love, though he was replaced after one season by David Byrne of Talking Heads. * The theme music for the American television show Eureka, broadcast on the Syfy channel. * The score of the Cartoon Network's TV series Regular Show. In 2013, Mothersbaugh appeared on an episode of The Aquabats! Super Show!, an action-comedy series by the creators of Yo Gabba Gabba! starring the Devo-influenced band The Aquabats, playing the eccentric scientist father of one of the main characters, Jimmy the Robot. He also guest-appeared on the Futurama episode, The Mutants Are Revolting. Mothersbaugh and Casale have also produced music for other artists, including Toni Basil. Visual art Mothersbaugh has also been successful as a visual artist. In November 2014, Mothersbaugh said, "I've done over 150 art gallery shows in the last 20 years." On February 6, 2014, the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver (MCA Denver) announced a retrospective exhibition to bring together the first comprehensive presentation of Mothersbaugh's art and music. This nationally touring exhibition was accompanied by a publication, Mark Mothersbaugh: Myopia, published by Princeton Architectural Press. Mothersbaugh hosted a drawing segment on the Nick Jr. television series Yo Gabba Gabba! called Mark's Magic Pictures, teaching children how to draw simple pictures. The pictures often come alive at the end of the segment through animation. Personal life At the age of seven, Mothersbaugh began wearing glasses to correct his severe myopia and astigmatism. Over the years, he took an interest in designing his own distinctive eyewear for use in Devo shows. He favored a set of stainless steel frames for regular use made by a Los Angeles shop called LA Eyeworks and says he purchased as many pairs as he could find because they tended to break or get stolen by fans. In a joint venture with eyewear manufacturer Shane Baum, Mothersbaugh has designed his own branded frames for sale, made of beryllium with a stainless steel chrome finish, in three different styles as of 2015. The Baumvision press release states that the unisex model "Francesca" is named for one of Mothersbaugh's pug dogs which is a simultaneous hermaphrodite that is also called Frank. He has been married twice. His first wife was actress Nancye Ferguson, who can be seen briefly performing with him in the 1999 superhero comedy film Mystery Men. His current wife is Anita Greenspan, who runs the film music managing company Greenspan Kohan Management with Neil Kohan. The couple has two daughters from China, adopted after Greenspan learned of the practice in that country of female children being abandoned because of their gender. Mothersbaugh is a collector and connoisseur of song poemsNERDIST Podcast Episode 130: Penn & Teller; Penn discusses his involvement along with Mark & [[Tom Ardolino] of NRBQ with collecting song poems (starting at 08:17 in the podcast).] and unusual or vintage musical devices. He is the owner of Raymond Scott's Electronium (although it is currently not functional). Honors and awards Mothersbaugh was honored with the Richard Kirk award at the 2004 BMI Film and TV Awards. The award is given annually to a composer of film and television music. On May 10, 2008, Mothersbaugh was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Kent State University. On May 28, 2016, Mothersbaugh was awarded the key to the city of Akron during a ceremony at the Akron-Summit County Public Library. Filmography * Human Highway (1982) * NBC (1990) (station ID's) * Felix the Cat (1990) (TV, digitally remastered footage version of the original series) (theme) * Super Mario World (1991) (TV) (theme) * Liquid Television (1991) (TV) * Davis Rules (1991) (TV) * Sewer Shark (1992) (VG) * Great Scott! (1992) (TV) * Frosty Returns (1992) (TV) * Mann & Machine (1992) (TV) * Beakman's World (1992) (TV) (theme) * Bakersfield P.D. (1993) (TV) * South Beach (1993) (TV) * Street Match (1993) (TV) * Down on the Waterfront (1993) * Hotel Malibu (1994) TV Series * Edith Ann: A Few Pieces of the Puzzle (1994) (TV) * Santo Bugito (1995) (TV) (as Mark "Mothersbug") * Too Something (1995) (TV) * If Not for You (1995) (TV) * Strange Luck (1995) (TV) * Sliders (1995) (TV) * The Courtyard (1995) (TV) * Flesh Suitcase (1995) * The Big Squeeze (1996) * Class Reunion (1996) (TV) * Quicksilver Highway (1997) (TV) * Fired Up (1997) (TV) * Men (1997) * Unwed Father (1997) (TV) * Working (1997) (TV) (theme) * Last Rites (1998) (TV) * The Mr. Potato Head Show (1998) (TV) * Stories from My Childhood (1998) (TV) * Interstate '82 (1999) (VG) * Rocket Power (1999) (TV) (theme music) * The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald: The Visitors from Outer Space (1999) (V) * Tucker (2000) (TV) * The Other Me (2000) (TV) * All Growed Up (2001) (TV) * Rugrats: Still Babies After All These Years (2001) (TV) * Second String (2002) (TV) * Cheats (2002) * MDs (2002) (TV) * Hidden Hills (2002) (TV) * The Groovenians! (2002) (TV) * Popeye's Voyage: The Quest for Pappy (2004) (V) * The Sims 2 (and Expansion Packs) (2004–2008) (VG) * The Complete Truth About De-Evolution (2004) (V) * Music for Edward Gorey (?) * Get a Mac (2006–2009) * Feed Me (2006) * Eureka (2006) (TV) (Theme) * Boom Blox (2008) (VG) * Cars Toons (2008–2014) * Boom Blox Bash Party (2009) (VG) * Skate 3 (2010) (VG) * Catfish (2010) * Hawaiian Vacation (2011) * Shameless (2011) (TV) * Thor: Ragnarok '' (2017) * ''Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018) * Thor: Love and Thunder (2021) Shows/Television/Telefilms Film 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Video games Bibliography * My Struggle (as Booji Boy) * What I Know Volume I * Beautiful Mutants Discography With Devo Solo Studio albums * Muzik for Insomniaks (Cassette, 1985) ** Later released on CD as Muzik for Insomniaks, Vol. 1 and Muzik for Insomniaks, Vol. 2 in 1988 by Rykodisc * Muzik for the Gallery (LP, 1987) * Joyeux Mutato (CD, 1999, Rhino Handmade limited edition; reissued 2000 by Rhino to regular retail) * The Most Powerful Healing Muzik in the Entire World (6-CD Set, 2005) * Mutant Flora (6 × Vinyl, 7" Box Set, 2017) References External links *Official website *Official art and exhibitions website * * * * * * * Category:Mark Mothersbaugh Category:1950 births Category:20th-century American musicians Category:20th-century American singers Category:21st-century American composers Category:21st-century American singers Category:American male songwriters Category:American male pop singers Category:American pop singers Category:American male singers Category:American multi-instrumentalists Category:American people of English descent Category:American people of Swiss descent Category:American record producers Category:American punk rock singers Category:American film score composers Category:American television composers Category:American new wave musicians Category:American synthpop musicians Category:American SubGenii Category:American rock songwriters Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American tenors Category:Devo members Category:Kent State University alumni Category:Living people Category:Male film score composers Category:Male television composers Category:Musicians from Akron, Ohio Category:Singers from Ohio Category:Songwriters from Ohio Category:Sony Pictures Animation people Category:Synthpop singers Category:Video game composers Category:Video game musicians Category:21st-century American artists Category:Animation composers Category:Bob Mothersbaugh Category:Josh Mancell Category:Wataru Hokoyama Category:Sunna Wehrmeijer Category:John Enroth Category:Albert Fox Category:Bruce Broughton Category:Alan Silvestri Category:Jerry Goldsmith Category:David Newman (composer) Category:Danny Elfman Category:Marvin Hamlisch Category:Bruce Fowler Category:Stephen Hilton Category:Mychael Danna Category:Atticus Ross Category:Leopold Ross Category:Hans Zimmer Category:James Dooley (composer) Category:Christopher Lennertz Category:Christopher Young Category:Patrick Doyle Category:Geoff Zanelli Category:Henning Lohner Category:Clay Duncan Category:Nick Glennie-Smith Category:Bobby Tahouri Category:Jamshied Sharifi Category:Brendan McCreary Category:Bear McCreary Category:Steven Scott Smalley Category:Harold Faltermeyer Category:James L. 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